CHOICES

 “Choice” I don’t know why I picked that word today, maybe cause I overheard someone say yesterday, ‘I didn’t have a choice.’ I hear that a lot, that’s the easiest excuse we give ourselves but there is always a choice. In every situation there is always a choice not just one but two or more. We take the easy one and say, I didn’t have a choice. Ok, let me give a little example or rather many.
  Ebele had a boyfriend, Reggie. They were engaged and set to marry in a week. She had gone to his place and his phone rang repeatedly while he was in the shower, she felt it was urgent; she picked the call and told the caller he was in the shower. Few minutes later, he got out, found out she touched his phone and gave her the beating of her life. Long story short, they got married as arranged. Now a married woman, bearing the ‘MRS’, Ebele always has marks and bruises plus dark eyeshades are now her best friends.  When asked why she married him, she said she didn’t have a choice. Ok, what about now? She still doesn’t have a choice and that he loves her very much that’s why.
  They both had choices. Ebele had two choices;
to pick and not to pick the call, to call off the engagement or not to call of the engagement, to divorce him and to stay with him. For Reggie; to tell her not to pick the call next time and to beat her up, to marry her or to call it off, to show his love by treating her like an egg or show it like a brute by using her as a punching bag. There were always two or more choices but the easy ones were taken up.
  Akin and Funmi were seeing each other. It was going great, Funmi couldn't believe her luck in finding Akin. He was supportive, attentive and showered her with love. They became really close and he called everyday then Wham! He stopped. She didn't hear from him anymore. He never called. She'd call he won't pick and won't call back. Akin had choices but he chose the coward's way out and disappeared. Funmi also had choices; to keep calling or to walk away.
  Simon grew up with abusive parents. His were the worst sort. Every day was hell. A serial killer was on the loose, the search was on. Alas, who was it? It was dear Simon. When asked why he did it, he said his parents were abusive so he learnt to hate people, that he had no choice.
  Didn’t he? He had plenty. He could have stood up to his parents or reported to the authorities or ran away or borne the pain. For the hate; he had a choice to learn that everyone wasn’t like his parents or learnt tolerance or hated people. For the killings; he had two choices, to kill or not to kill. He had a choice to grow up normal or not to.
  Emem was stuck in a job he hated. He had to drag himself out of bed each morning to go to work. His pay was terrible. Others he had better qualifications than got promoted and were paid better while he still did his work and theirs. His boss always derived pleasure from humiliating Emem. When asked why he didn’t leave, Emem said, he needed the money to survive. Each night after getting home, Emem takes out his paint brushes and paints, he also sculpts. He leaves it all in his apartment for no one to see. Then morning comes, he goes to his boring work again. When asked why he doesn’t take up art fully, he said he didn’t have a choice that his parents wouldn’t approve.
  Emem had lots of choices; I would leave you to figure that out.
  In every situation, we have more than a choice but we always take the easiest and most likely choice and say we didn’t have any. Fate always gives us two choices. Remember the teachings saying that God gave man freewill? Well freewill always brings having to make a decision. Do you know the most beautiful thing about it all? Any choice you make creates a chain reaction of events. You choose A and your life goes this way, you choose B and it goes the other way. There are always choices so look and think well before you make a choice because she carries things with her. In life, there is always more than a choice, you choose what you want.  Your mood, where you are today, where you’d be tomorrow, what you’ll get out of life are all triggered by a choice you made and will still make. What’s your choice today?